


from heavy to light (maybe)

by shinryujin



Series: shinryujin's Drabble Week [3]
Category: A.C.E (Beat Interactive Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Pet Store, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, Mention of Hae, Mention of Kim Byeongkwan, Mention of Kim Sehyoon, Mention of Park Junhee, Moving On, Pet Store, Puppy Love, but it's not as bad as it sounds, donghun going through a breakup, would've actually titled this 'maybe the night' like the ben&ben song
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-17
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:21:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26516647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shinryujin/pseuds/shinryujin
Summary: 'He’d been wandering around aimlessly, no energy nor motivation for anything. And whenever he did do something, it took him a long time to start and even then, it felt like he was doing everything half-assed. That day, on their supposed third anniversary, he wanted to do something else. He felt like he needed to do something else. Maybe he could finally close that chapter in his life and have his healing come full circle.'Donghun has been trying his best to cope with a great loss, so he tries to relive every single moment — alone, this time. Then he meets a puppy named Bam.
Relationships: Kang Yuchan | Chan/Lee Donghun
Series: shinryujin's Drabble Week [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1923559
Comments: 3
Kudos: 14





	from heavy to light (maybe)

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written anything in a long time since I haven't really been doing well mental health-wise. Even my ongoing ones are currently on-hold until I start feeling better and capable enough to continue them. But I really want to get back into writing again so I thought maybe I could do a drabble week challenge for myself just to kick things off for me.
> 
> This was supposed to be a drabble but I guess it got out of hand for a bit so I ended up writing a whole oneshot lol. My idea for this oneshot (and the rest of the ones I'll be doing for my drabble week challenge) came from the amazing author [Aera](http://twitter.com/gottaberyu/)'s writing prompt thread [here](https://twitter.com/gottaberyu/status/1303354035123163136).
> 
>  **Prompt:** “Hi! Are you here to adopt a puppy?”

Donghun didn’t know how many times he was going to end up putting his alarm on snooze that morning. Or that week, for that matter. Normally, he’d be awake by nine-thirty in the morning, but it was already almost noon and his empty husk of a body was still slumped over his bed. It has been over three months since his girlfriend of almost three years left him for someone else; since then, he’d been feeling like a dead man walking. He had to drag himself out of bed, constantly force himself to eat, remind himself to go to the gym to keep his membership, convince himself to finish writing a song or the current chapter of the book he was working on.

Some days, he didn’t even want to wake up at all. But of course, he’d never show his friends any of that. He could totally spend the whole afternoon having a movie marathon at Junhee’s; or the whole night playing video games and drinking _maekju_ at Sehyoon and Byeongkwan’s; or go out for Korean barbecue with all three of them; and still end up breaking down on his bathroom floor upon arriving home. Either that or stare at the ceiling for hours, wondering where he went wrong. He kept holding on to his weekly visits to his brother’s just to babysit and play with Hae, but even _that_ would lose its magic on some weeks.

For some pathetic reason, though, that particular morning made him feel so much heavier than all the other days. He felt like a bag of sand being cast into sea. His bones felt like they were made of lead. Not to mention, his head was in pain and the ringing of his alarm made it ten times worse, like big church bells clanging and screeching against each other. Calling it a really bad hangover would be an understatement. Groggily, he reached for his phone and hit snooze for the nth time, eyes adjusting to the screen light. And then he saw what day it was.

It was their supposed third anniversary.

He groaned and sighed as he pulled himself out of bed. He spent about fifteen minutes just scrolling through his socials before making brunch. As he went through his daily routine, he contemplated on what to do for the day. He’d been wandering around aimlessly, no energy nor motivation for anything. And whenever he _did_ do something, it took him a long time to start and even then, it felt like he was doing everything half-assed. That day, on their supposed third anniversary, he wanted to do something else. He felt like he needed to do something else. Maybe he could finally close that chapter in his life and have his healing come full circle.

 _What would I have planned for our third anniversary?_ He pondered on the thought while having his mandatory post-brunch coffee.

“Well, we’d probably go to the mall,” he said out loud to absolutely no one, speaking his thoughts like word vomit as if someone was listening. “Maybe I’d take her to our usual spots, eat at our favourite Japanese food bar. I would’ve gotten her something a little more extravagant but still practical enough for her to use frequently. And the prettiest bouquet of flowers.” Donghun could feel his heart sink as he told himself all his would-have-been plans while throwing himself back into past memories of them doing all those same things. He remembered almost every single date they had, and they flashed through his head like a super-cut.

His eyes were brimming with tears but he went on. “I would’ve taken her to see a good movie. Maybe a romantic, slice-of-life comedy or a fantasy one. We could also go to the arcade, or go bowling, or go to a karaoke, or play a VR game. She loved doing all those. Maybe I would’ve even taken her to see Hae before bringing her home.” He finished what was left of his coffee then crashed back onto his bed, his eyes up on the ceiling. “God, I would’ve taken you to the moon if I could…” he whispered softly and closed his eyes. His breath was shaky and so was his voice, choking up on almost every word. It was only when he opened his eyes again that he felt how wet the sides of his face were with tears.

Donghun eventually braced himself for his long, emotional, grueling day alone, despite knowing that, had things not gone the way they have, he could’ve been spending it with her. So he got dressed with a heavy heart and tears in his eyes, and listened to the playlist he made for her three years ago as he made his way to the mall.

* * *

In a span of six hours, Donghun had already eaten a bowl of miso-based ramen, watched the sappiest romantic comedy film available (he may or may not have cried in several scenes — he had to sink in his seat lower to keep the other audience from staring at him), and sang all their favourite songs as a couple at a small _noraebang_ inside the arcade by himself (his tears would threaten to come out and choke him up again in every other line). All that was left on his bucket list was to buy flowers and a gift.

But what gift? And who would he even give it to? Donghun was a hundred percent sure that he didn’t want nor need to buy himself anything, especially after impulse-buying a whole catalog of clothes online and even new games for his Nintendo Switch. Suddenly, his brilliant mind thought of spoiling someone who would never break his heart the way people could: Hae. His face lit up at his own idea, hooded eyes almost disappearing underneath his puffy eyelids and eye bags from crying.

After buying a bouquet of flowers for him to display at home, Donghun headed over to the nearest pet store in that mall, with a small spring in his step. As he entered, he was greeted warmly by the staff at the door and proceeded to shop for Hae. _Her usual cat food, some good catnip, maybe new toys, new clothes, and even a new dispenser? Sounds about right,_ he said in his mind, one hand holding a bouquet and another holding a basket.

Right as he was putting a bag of catnip in his shopping basket, he got distracted by the faint barking and whining from the dogs in cages behind the glass wall to his right. The area seemed like an extension of the pet store, and he found a door going to the area itself but decided to look at the dogs through the glass instead. Donghun’s eyes locked onto a puppy that was barking and wagging its tail happily at him. The puppy had a bald spot _and_ a limp on its left hind leg but otherwise, it looked like it had been rehabilitated and taken care of. He couldn’t stop staring at the tiny, hairy furball.

Just then, the loudest, most cheerful voice he’d ever heard greeted him out of nowhere. Donghun could smell a hint of citrus in the air — something like… tangerine? “Hi! Are you here to adopt a puppy?”

He turned his head to see a staff member with darkest mop of hair but with the brightest smile, aura, and demeanor, standing behind him. The staff member grinned expectantly as he waited for Donghun to respond then shook his head. “Oh, shoot, where are my manners?” the staff member laughed to himself. “My name is Kang Yuchan, Chan for short! At your service! Do you need any help with your purchases or would you be interested in giving one of our puppies here a forever home?”

 _For someone who was working in customer service until nighttime, this one staff member sure has a lot of energy left,_ thought Donghun. _But he’s adorable, I’ll give him that_. Chan reminded Donghun of the sun on a windy day. As a response to Chan’s question, though, he gave him a weak head shake. “I’m good, just waiting for one of the staff to take out a new stock of the food and water dispenser,” Donghun replied. “This puppy caught my eye, though.”

“Wait, whoa!” Chan exclaimed all of a sudden. “That’s a really pretty bouquet. Is that for your girlfriend? She must be very lucky. What’s the occasion?” The previous smile he had on got even bigger, making Donghun wonder how that was even physically possible when the guy’s smile already took up half of his face.

Donghun shook his head weakly again. “Nah, I bought it for me. It’s supposed to be our third anniversary but she left, so…” he sucked in a breath, realizing how personal and intimate the conversation was sounding — especially for two people who had just met in a pet store and had a relationship purely built out of capitalism. He didn’t know what he got more annoyed with — Chan for being nosier than most store clerks or himself for responding and almost oversharing anyway.

Chan’s face turned into an awkward and embarrassed one as he read the room. He took a small step back. “Ooo…kay, I see. I’m sorry,” he said. “So you’re not here to buy a puppy then?” Before Donghun could even respond, he started talking about the puppy in question. “That one you got your eye on. That’s Bam. The local pound found him whimpering one night, alone in someone’s backyard. The home wasn’t occupied and the neighbors said the previous homeowners moved. Bam happened to be a newborn when they found him, like two or three months old, and there were more than a handful from the litter.

“The neighbors thought maybe the homeowners left Bam on accident, but maybe they just had so many pups to bring when they moved that they decided to leave one behind to lighten the load. I’m not entirely sure. It makes me sad, either way,” Chan continued.

The customer wondered to himself how the puppy got a bald spot and a limp but as if on cue, the store clerk beside him answered before he could ask. “See that bald spot? He got it from walking into a wired, metal fence. One of the wires dug into his leg that he got a bad wound _and_ a limp. He’s doing so much better now, though!” said Chan. “But apparently he still cries every night, without fail. Every night, I’d hear him whimper.”

Chan waved at the puppy that was still wagging its tail at them and pressing its paws against the glass, as if it were begging Donghun to bring him home. The store clerk snuck a peek at the customer who was also still staring back intently at the puppy. Chan thought the man had the saddest eyes he’d ever seen and maybe that was all because of anatomy, but he could’ve sworn he saw a film of tears glimmer in his eyes. It was as if the connection between the customer and the puppy was genuine enough to be palpable. The store clerk thought he needed to do just a bit better on the sales talk and maybe Donghun would be convinced somehow.

“I think you should buy him,” Chan whispered behind Donghun then feigned cluelessness, eyes darting around. “Wait what? Who said that? Did you hear that? Who said- Did you- definitely not me, though. Phew, I must be hearing things.” He took another peek at Donghun, who was furrowing his brows at him, one of them raised.

“I mean, whoever said it is right, though,” said the store clerk, acting completely unfazed by how the customer probably thought he was weird. “I don’t think a puppy would hurt you the same way a girl would, ever… or a boy, if you’re into that, too. We don’t do judgment here, sir, noooo we do not, we leave judgment by the door and make it go away, no judgment allowed in the premises.” After his short energy-laden spiel, he shot Donghun a wide, smug grin, eyes forming two slits.

Donghun just blinked at him. “This is ridiculous,” he muttered under his breath. He leaned back a bit and turned his head to scan the room for other staff members. “Hey, is he new here?” he asked, obviously referring to Chan, but the clerks at the cash register just giggled at him. He turned to face Chan again. “I know you’re trying to sales-talk me into buying that puppy but you’re asking personal questions and being all… weird.”

The store clerk’s gaze shifted to the floor, to the space between his feet. “All I said was the puppy won’t hurt you and I made sure to be inclusive just in case you liked boys, too…” he whispered, but it was loud enough for the customer to hear. Chan could see the tiniest of scowls form on Donghun’s lips and his nose ring on his nostril glinted in the light. He did a ninety-degree bow and apologized profusely. “I’m very sorry, sir. I’ve been told that I’m weird sometimes but I should really be more mindful, especially in front of a customer, I’m so sorry.”

“And? So what if I _do_? What if I like boys, too? Are you interested?”

“What?” Chan was taken aback at the sudden question, but maybe he deserved it after making the customer feel uncomfortable. Nevertheless, it made Chan's cheeks heat up, not out of embarrassment or shame but because he felt something flutter in his chest. “Sir, that’s not what I…”

“Didn’t think so,” the older man rolled his eyes. But deep down, he was cursing himself. _Did I really just come out to a stranger? Jesus._ He shrugged it off; perfect timing to cut a conversation since one of the staff members brought out the food and water dispenser he asked for. “Anyway, I’ll think about it. I might’ve gotten a little attached to Bam already. I guess you could say that I see myself in him.”

The young clerk assisted Donghun with his purchases and helped scan his items for packaging. “Alright, we could give you a call or you could contact us when you want to come back for him,” said Chan. He found out that the customer’s name was Lee Donghun. Chan thought the name suited him, and the way Donghun said his own name made Chan feel fuzzy.

Before giving the customer his receipt, he reached for a calling card in the drawer and wrote something behind it. “Here’s the branch’s number, if you want your concerns to be directed to the manager,” he explained, “and here’s mine, if you want your concerns to be directed to… well, me. Just because I know more about the puppies up for adoption than anyone!”

Donghun nodded as he took the calling card from the younger one’s hand. “I’ll remember that.”

* * *

Donghun remembered leaving home with his heart feeling like a ten kilogram weight in his chest. He spent most of his day facing every emotion he felt headfirst with tears streaming his face, trying not to mind the dirty looks he got from people passing by. He nursed the pain and relived every single memory he had with the ex-girlfriend he loved wholeheartedly for three years as he went through the places they used to walk. So he wasn’t entirely sure how he was able to arrive home, feeling the lightest he has ever been in months.

For some reason, though, Donghun couldn’t stop thinking about the black-haired, tangerine-smelling store clerk at the pet shop. He couldn’t stop thinking about the puppy, either, but more so the boy who tried to bring him and the puppy together. Was it the way he smiled so widely, brightly, warmly — like he was made of sunshine and gentleness? Was it the way he greeted him and every other customer like his energy never ran out? (He could still hear him saying, “Good bye, come again soon, sir! See you next time!”) Was it the subtle tangerine scent?

At that moment, Donghun didn’t know exactly. But what he did know was that Chan was one of the reasons why he’d been feeling a bit like he could take flight anytime soon. He remembered smiling genuinely on his way out of that pet store, even though he had to carry everything he bought on the train ride home.

Maybe he needed all of that. Maybe he deserved to give _himself_ closure. Maybe he needed today so he could let most of the heaviness in his heart go, today of all days. Even when he thought that he’d be spending today with his now-ex girlfriend, and that they’d be spending all their years together. Now, everything has come full circle, Donghun felt.

Maybe he needed today. Maybe tomorrow would be better. Maybe he _should_ adopt a puppy named Bam. Maybe he was meant to meet the black-haired, tangerine-smelling store clerk at the pet shop.

“Maybe I’m interested,” Donghun whispered to no one in particular before falling into a deep, peaceful sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly never thought I'd be writing a Dongchan, especially when I ship Donghun with Jun lol. But please follow my writing account on twitter ([@solaryushin](http://twitter.com/solaryushin/)) if you haven't, but only if you want to hehe. I hope you liked this one anyway, and if you did, please do feel free to leave some kudos and some nice comments uwu. Thank you!


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